Hurricane Matthew 2016
Status: Closed
Pre-Landfall 1 | Summary
Posting Date: September 30, 2016, 9:30:00 AM
Matthew became a Category 3 hurricane this morning. Matthew first passed through the Windward Islands and Barbados as a tropical storm on Wednesday into Thursday, then intensified to become a Category 1 hurricane—the 2016 Atlantic hurricane season’s fifth—yesterday afternoon. It was pronounced a Category 2 hurricane as of 8 a.m., Eastern Time, then intensified to become a major hurricane by 11 a.m. with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph. Matthew is about 500 miles east-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, moving west-southwest at 12 mph.
Reported Impacts in the Caribbean
The storm is reported to have dumped 9.21 inches of rain at the George F.L. Charles Airport on northern St. Lucia on Wednesday into Thursday; at the Hewanorra International Airport on southern St. Lucia, 13.19 inches were recorded during the 12-hour period between 8.p.m., September 28, and 8 a.m., September 29. All businesses, government offices, and schools in St. Lucia and Dominica were ordered shut on Wednesday. Dominica was well prepared for Matthew after last year’s Tropical Storm Erika caused 31 fatalities and destroyed up to 500 homes; Erika, which hit in August last year, was Dominica’s deadliest storm since David struck in 1979.
On Barbados, sustained winds of 39 mph and widespread flooding were reported on Wednesday. Matthew downed trees and caused power outages and the temporary closure of Grantley Adams International Airport, businesses, public services, courts, the transportation system, and schools. No deaths were reported there. St. Vincent reported one death, and 90 people were evacuated. In Martinique, a wind gust of 89 mph was reported in St. Pierre on Wednesday; trees fell on power lines, and 63,000 homes lost power. Schools were closed there, flights were canceled, and public transportation shut down. Guadeloupe has downed trees and blocked or closed roads.
Early this morning, Matthew took a very unusual southern track, passing north of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao, all of which had tropical storm warnings already in effect. The storm is also passing close to Colombia, which has a rare tropical storm warning in effect also. Aruba and Curacao experienced flooding; Aruba ordered government offices closed, and parliamentary elections in Curacao, which were supposed to be held today, were postponed until next week.
Forecast Track and Intensity
There is still considerable uncertainty around the future track and intensity of Hurricane Matthew. Despite ongoing wind shear, Matthew has continued to intensify; however, while some models show it may weaken during the next 12-48 hours, the official National Hurricane Center forecast has major hurricane intensity maintained through its potential landfall in Jamaica on Monday. A low- to mid-level ridge is expected to keep Matthew moving west or west-southwest for the next 36 hours, at decreasing speed. After 48 hours, weakening of the ridge is anticipated and shift east as a mid- to upper-level trough moves into the central and eastern Gulf of Mexico, according to the National Hurricane Center. This is expected to cause Matthew to make a turn to the northwest and then northward. In addition to Jamaica, hurricane conditions are also expected to impact Haiti, eastern Cuba, the Bahamas, and Turks and Caicos.
It is unclear whether Matthew will make a U.S. landfall or brush the East Coast.